Grandma's Kitchen Table

They Did It! State Champs 2011

      The 2011 High School Boys Swimming and Diving Champions - Carmel High School with the Trophy (Matt is top left holding the trophy).

      They did it!  The Carmel High School Boys Swimming and Diving Team won the state swimming championship on Saturday.  

      The kid did well.  Matt got first in the 200 Freestyle, a repeat performance from last year, second in the 100 Freestyle (first in that went to one of his best friends, Harrison), a step up from last year when he finished third in that swim, second in the 200 Freestyle Relay, a repeat performance from last year, and first in the 400 Freestyle Relay, another repeat performance from last year. 

      What a day!  Very very happy boy, team, coaches, and parents.  So proud of each and every single one of these boys who have worked so hard to win this trophy and title...what a way to end the high school swimming years.  Time now for next year's team to step up and carry on the winning streak!  Go Greyhounds! 

CHS Boys State Team - Pre-State Dinner

Photo: (from left around the table) Mark, Max, Vic, John, Mark, Michael, Mitch, Kiernan, Matt, Nate, Mike, Jonathan, Roma, Oneil, Jack, Elliot, and Clayon (Cameron was not able to make it)

      The weeks leading up to swimming sectionals and swimming state find the boys enjoying various activities, meals, and fun times together, each milestone marked with a dwindling number of swimmers as they swim their way toward cut times, some making the cuts while some will try again in the coming years. 

      There are 18 out of the 55 boys going to state with individual swims and/or relay times. Tonight they met to eat a pre-state dinner and to hear encouraging words from one another and the coaches.  As the moms brought in contributions for the dinners, 4 very large lasagnas, three huge salads, 4 large loaves of garlic bread, 2 dozen yeast rolls, cheese, crackers, milk, chocolate milk, apple juice, water bottles, three angel food cakes, a huge container of strawberries, whipped cream, sherbet....I was thinking, "this is a whole lot of food."  How much was left?  I think Matt said maybe one or two slices of cake.  These boys can eat after a practice! 

      Two more days until we cheer them all on at state:  Go Greyhounds!  While they, of course, are hoping for another state title, we are all so proud of each and every one of these guys, and all the rest of the guys who make up the team just for being who they are in or out of the water.  Each of them is already a winner! 

Tuesdays with Dorie: Toasted Almond Scones

      Thanks to Mike, from Living Out West, for his pick of Toasted Almond Scones, found on pages 28-29 of Dorie Greenspan's Baking from My Home to Yours cookbook. 

      When Mike got the email letting him know that it was his turn to host the TWD recipe, he was on Twitter and tweeted such asking for suggestions, "or should I just pick the one that I first opened the book to?"  I voted for that idea as it was these scones!
      Thanks for picking them, Mike, these were really wonderful.  I made them once, we ate them all, forgot the photos, so I made them again and I have to say, these are definitely worthy of repeating again numerous times.  One can find this recipe here, or buy the book and you can have them all! 

      The almond flavor in these scones comes from ground almonds, chopped almonds, sliced almonds, and almond extract...such a wealth of goodness!  Definitely a repeat. 

       Next week:  Christine from Black Cat Cooking has chosen Chocolate Pots de Creme, found on pages 390-391. TWD blogroll found here.

CHS Boys' Turn: Lead-in to State Swimming 2011

      While the CHS girls' swim team has finished their season, the CHS boys' swim team is in the middle of their championship season.  The final high school swimmers' Saturday morning spirit breakfast was held two Saturdays ago to a reduced crowd of hungry boys after morning practice.  I thought we were cooking for the entire roster of 55 but when the boys started coming up after practice, realized that only the sectional swimmers were at practice that day...no matter, the boys were happy to eat up and enjoy what was offered.  

      Sunday the boys met and all dyed their hair blonde...this is a tradition I don't understand, but I go along with it anyway because apparently it is just something they do/have done forever and day, so at this point, it's tradition.  Surprisingly enough, it doesn't take me that long to get used to Matt being a blonde, shocking at first, but by the second day, seems fairly normal.  Don't know what that says.

      On Wednesday the entire roster of 55 boy swimmers showed up for the traditional night before sectionals Spaghetti Dinner and Hair Clipping.
The food line, seniors first...spaghetti, salad, garlic bread, and dessert...when one crockpot runs out, there are more waiting in the kitchen to replace it...these boys can eat!
Senior boys get seated first at the senior table:  John, Matt, Mike, Kiernan, Sean, Tyler, Fillipo.
The up and coming classes...I promised Jimmy I would put this photo in of them...Jimmy, Clayton, Elliot, all outstanding CHS swimmers ready to take over when the seniors depart.
Each year the seniors from the previous year send an encouraging letter for the team and the current seniors read these letters aloud, much fun and a great time for the boys.  Letters from Nik,  Daniel, Johnny, Matt F., Cheffy,  and Charles were read by (left to right) Eric, Tyler, Mike, John, Matt, Kiernan, Cameron, Fillipo, and Sean.

      Another tradition.  The senior boys man the hair clippers, giving the underclassmen very strange hair cuts, each unique, different, and without a bit of consent or not from the owner of the hair.  It's tradition.  The Seniors then hand the clippers over to someone they trust to clip their own hair, again, the person clipping gets to choose the new hairstyle.  Matt cut Jonathan's hair and in turn Jonathan cut Matt's hair.  I think you will agree that normally Matt would not let Jonathan anywhere near his head with a pair of clippers.
I knew when they started that nothing good would come of these two being let loose with a pair of clippers on each others' hair. The boys sported these fancy hairdos at school the next day and then to sectional prelims on Thursday last and by Friday morning, the hair was gone, and we have the official state haircut for boy swimmers:  the buzz.          Despite the silly hairdos, the boys were all very serious at sectionals and managed to take first in every event but one, ending up with 21 swims, a large number indeed, with 11 CHS boys going to state. 

      At Sectionals Matt placed 4/4 in first place finishes for his swims so he is looking good going into state this weekend.  All the same, keep the fingers crossed and the thoughts good and positive as we all know:  any swimmer can beat any other swimmer at any pool on any given day.  It happens.  Go, Matt, Go Carmel...looking for another state win for the team this year. Here are some photos from sectionals.  Let the serious busines of swimming begin...Matt getting ready to swim the 200 Freestyle, he won this swim at state last year so this is his goal to win it again this year.

Finished and waiting for the rest of them to swim in...a good start to the meet for Matt and also Kiernan and Peter...finishing 1, 2, and 3.
And the 100 Freestyle, again Matt, Peter, Jonathan finishing 1, 2, and 3, with Max in 6th.  (Although Peter swims for a different high school, he is in the CSC USA Swim Club and he and Matt joined the team at the same time, Matt was 7 and Peter was 6, so although he isn't technically a CHS swimmer, he is still one of "ours" from the swim club.)

And, at this point in the meet, someone just lost track of taking stills during the relays...that would be me.  The CHS 200 freestyle relay (Matt, Jonathan, Vic, and Roma) took first and the CHS 400 freestyle relay (Matt, Kiernan, Jonathan, and Max) also took first.  There should be photos but sometimes one just gets all caught up in the cheering at relay time and picture taking goes by the wayside.  Oops.

      I did get a photo of the guys with the sectional trophy, one very happy team! That would be Matt in the center holding the trophy.

      And, of course, the Lovely Reyn was around to help celebrate...Matt sporting his new Valentine's Day gift shoes from her, very wild and fun Nike customs which he is thrilled with, and because girlfriends are just so thoughtful and sweet, a package with balloons and inspirational messages to be opened one a day for this week leading to state (accompanied by candy kisses)...and Coach Chris, if you are reading this, Matt is saving all that candy for AFTER state...this week it's nutrition at its finest only this week, no candy for the candy-loving kid.  And, thanks for all you have done to get the boys this far...Go Greyhounds, or as my Louisiana friend Margaret says it, "Geaux Greyhounds!"

Girls Report First with their First at State - Silver Anniversary - 25 Consecutive Years!

Congratulations CHS Girls Swim Team!  The final leap into the pool to celebrate the victory...senior girls and head coach in last.

Taken from Maggie's CSC Newsletter Report:

February 11-13^th marked three hallmark days for the ladies of Carmel Swim Club as they swam to great successes both at the IHSAA State Championships and the CSC Time Trial. 

Carmel Swim Club was a dominating force at the Natatorium both in and out of the pool on Friday and Saturday.  The support from CSC families in the stands at the meet was absolutely amazing.  Seventeen CSC girls competed for Carmel High School on our way to winning a national record 25^th consecutive state championship; eight additional CSC swimmers competed at the meet from four neighboring high schools.  We hope all of our swimmers in the stands enjoyed the celebration of all the hard work these young ladies put in to their swimming day in and day out, and are looking forward to their own upcoming championship seasons.

From the outset of the meet, there was no doubt that it would be a great day for Carmel.  The CHS girls started out the meet by setting a new National Public High School Record in the 200 Medley Relay, and senior Rhiannon Sheets broke Olympian Lindsay Benko’s 200 Free State Record.  The Greyhounds continued their excellent run, winning the first four events of the meet and achieving 23 lifetime best times out of 25 swims.  By the conclusion of the meet on Saturday, Carmel Swim Club athletes won nine out of 11 possible state championships and five new school and club records were set:

• 200 Medley Relay – Carmel (Lacey Locke 10, Samantha Shaheen 12, Ariana Bullard 10, Carly Marshall 12), 1:41.42.  CHS/CSC Record, State Meet Record, National Public HS Record
• 200 Freestyle – Rhiannon Sheets, 12, Carmel, 1:47.09.  CHS/CSC Record, State Meet Record
• 200 Individual Medley – Lacey Locke, 10, Carmel, 2:00.71.
•  50 Freestyle – Carly Marshall, 12, Carmel, 23.35.
• 100 Freestyle – Zoe Mattingly, 11, Zionsville, 50.58.
• 500 Freestyle – Lauren Jordan, 12, Carmel, 4:47.69.  CHS/CSC Record
• 200 Freestyle Relay – Carmel (Carly Marshall 12, Lucy Kramer 11, Rhiannon Sheets 12, Lacey Locke 10), 1:34.14.
• 100 Backstroke – Lacey Locke, 10, Carmel, 54.26.  CHS/CSC Record
•  400 Freestyle Relay – Carmel (Rhiannon Sheets 12 – 50.22 lead-off – CSC Record, Lauren Jordan 12, Alexis Bullard 11, Margaret Ramsey 11) 3:25.00.

In addition to our event champions, the following swimmers placed in the top 16 at Saturday’s finals: Summer Brown (200 FR -13^th, 500 FR -13^th); Alexis Bullard (100 FR – 3^rd, 100 BK – 2^nd); Ariana Bullard (50 FR – 7^th); Elizabeth Flaherty (500 FR – 15^th); Lauren Jordan (200 FR – 2^nd); Lucy Kramer (200 IM – 8^th, 100 BR 10^th); Carly Marshall (100 FR – 4^th); Zoe Mattingly (200 FR – 3^rd); Margaret Ramsey (200 FR – 4^th, 500 FR – 5^th); Sam Shaheen (100 BR – 4^th); Keely Simonson (100 BR – 12^th); and Grace VanAllen (200 FR – 10^th).

 Two CSC swimmers achieved their first ever Junior National cuts on Friday evening: Sophomore Ariana Bullard and Senior Carly Marshall.  Carly was also honored with the IHSAA Mental Attitude Award.  We are so proud of her accomplishments both in and out of the pool. 

 As a testament to the dedication and drive these girls all share, they returned to the Carmel Aquatics Center on Sunday afternoon for a time trial.   The girls swam their hearts out once more, and Sunday was a fantastic finish to a great weekend.  The swimmers who competed earned a combined 29 lifetime best times.  Lacey Locke set a new CSC Record in the 200 Backstroke (1:57.64); Caroline Inman achieved her first ever individual Senior State cut in the 100 Backstroke; Carolyn Belford achieved her first individual Senior State cuts in the 400 IM and 200 Breaststroke; and Kayla Fearrin earned a new Senior State cut in the 200 Breaststroke.

 We hope you can all come together to support our CSC boys as they begin their high school championship season at Carmel High School this weekend for Sectionals.  Preliminaries will take place on Thursday at 5:30 PM and finals will start at 1 PM on Saturday. 

Tuesdays with Dorie: My Favorite Pecan Pie (Rewind)

      Thanks to Sharon, from Simply Southern, for her pick of Bourbon Bread Pudding, found on page 407 of Dorie Greenspan's Baking from My Home to Yours cookbook.  There are a whole lot of people who were looking forward to making this, Sharon, so they were thrilled. You can find this recipe here, or buy the book and you can have them all! 

      That said, I did not make that recipe this week as this is not a bread pudding eating household.  Sorry, we are just not fans.  Rather than just pass this week, I decided to do a rewind of a TWD recipe that I had missed in the past for one odd excuse or the other.  This week I made My Favorite Pecan Pie, page 327, which had been chosen by Brina and you can find the recipe for that here. 

      I'm on a pie making kick.  February is National Pie Month and I have been making a mini pie a day for the past 7 days, so when I decided I was going to do a rewind, I knew it was going to be some sort of pie.  I have to say that my pie making skills are getting better each day.  I still cannot do a Dorie's crust, as you can see, the edges of this one fell apart out of the pan, so I'll work on it.  My regular pie crust handles much better for me for some reason, but I think the taste of Dorie's is excellent, so I must hone my skills so that I can handle this one as well.

      There is no doubt that the pies are edible as they have been disappearing.  At any rate, one of Mark's favorite pies is the Pecan Pie, so I thought I would give Dorie's recipe a try for him to see if it was a palate-pleaser.  It was.  I think he would be happy to eat this whenever I had the urge to make it.  It has chocolate in it, so it pleased the chocolate lovers around here as well.  Definitely a repeat. 

        Next week:  Caroline and Claire from Bake With Us have chosen Chocolate Oatmeal Drops, found on page 75. TWD blogroll found here.

Nancy's Notions: Cucumber Pickle Juice Rye Loaf

      It's been awhile since Nancy and I have had a chance to Twitter bake together but we found occasion yesterday after her daughter Allison made and posted  Dan Lepard's Cucumber Pickle Juice Rye Loaf.  It caught my attention because, well because it had the word "pickle" in the title and that's all it takes to pique my interest as I am all about a good pickle always.

      Dan Lepard is the author of our much beloved and much baked Milk Loaf Bread, of which I must be entitled to some sort of award by now for making it the most of anyone other than possibly Dan Lepard himself.  What can I say, it's a hit around here for sandwiches, toast, and grilled cheese.  We never tire of it.

      While the Pickle Bread is of a completely different nature, very dark, dense, and made with toasted rye flour, I wanted to give it a try for Ruben sandwiches so Nancy and I worked on it together, with Allison's tweeting her experience, opinions, and advice as well, and came up with a nice and interesting experiment. 

      I say experiment as it is good, but I didn't care for it with Rubens, preferring a softer rye for those instead.  That said, Mark really liked this for Ruben sandwiches and thought it was just great.  A good thing because Nancy and I were twittering the whole day about how the bread was not rising as we had envisioned it would, etc.
      In the end, I prefer to have one thin slice of this bread with just a little cheese on it.  It is great with the pickle flavor and that I did love.  I just didn't care for so much bread in my mouth and the need to chew it quite so much...that's why a thin slice works better than a thicker one loaded with all the Ruben ingredients, i.e. corned beef, sauerkraut, cheese, as you have to have a thick slice of bread to handle all that.  You can make it and be your own judge. 

      The dough is fun to work with and it makes a really cute little loaf.  (The recipe says to divide it into two loaves but on Allison's advice, I made it into one loaf as she felt the little ones were maybe just a little too little.  My loaf was about six inches in diameter when it came out of the oven.  No discernible rise at all, despite several hours of encouragement otherwise.)  

      I was most excited about learning some new techniques with this bread, especially using toasted flour as I had never toasted flour before using it and I wasn't sure how that would go and what that would taste like. Turns out that it is quite easy to do, smelled wonderful, and tasted very nice...sort of a deeper richer nuttier type of flavor with a more brownish color to it.  Now I can say I have done that...and used pickle juice for the liquid in a bread! 

     The bread definitely tastes like dill pickles and is delicious!  I might actually make this again when I have pickle juice enough saved up (it takes 1-1/2 cups of it).  It was a fun day. Here's the link to the bread recipe so you can give it a try in your kitchen, especially on days like this one (photo below) where it's a good thing to just stay inside and bake while looking outside at all this snow coming down...I think we had another five inches yesterday...I've sort of lost my excitement over it all (okay, I never really had any excitement over it all) and am ready for my green grass, blooming flowers, and leafy trees.  Soon.

Friday's Favorites Fare

READING:  The Assyrian Empire by John Boardman   

LISTENING TO:  Tom Petty (a friend had the nerve to refer to it as "oh, the old tunes" and I am aghast)
SWIMMING NEWS:  High School Girls Sectionals today and tomorrow... Go Lady Greyhounds! 

COOKING BYTES:  Having a great time reading One Big Table and trying recipes from it...a history of regional cooking with personal stories and vintage photos and recipes.  

FAV NEW FIND:  It's February and that means one month closer to spring.  Be still my heart!

FAV THING THIS WEEK:  We had terrible weather this week, snow, ice, sleet, cold...that was NOT my favorite thing, but my favorite thing was that school was canceled for 3 days so I got to have Matt (and Mark for one of the days) home which was really nice...getting to spend time with the guys always a favorite thing.  And, in the photo above, taken yesterday, the icicles are starting to melt a bit...just a bit.

GOING TO:  Hang around the house this weekend...it's still cold and besides girl's swimming sectionals, Mass, choir, etc., am thinking this is a great weekend to stay in and watch Big Ten Basketball and a little thing called the Super Bowl.  IU beat the #21 team (Illinois) last week and the #20 team (Minnesota) this week, so just who knows how far the Hoos can really go this year?  Already better than we dreamed.  Hawks beat MSU which wasn't bad either.

PRAYING FOR:  All those facing surgery and recovery, please join me.

Thirty Minute Thursdays: Penne with Four Cheeses

       This week for Thirty Minute Thursdays, cooking our way through Giuliano Hazan's Thirty Minute Pasta book with Glennis, Abby, and whoever else wants to join us, I made Penne ai Quattro Formaggi (Penne with Four Cheeses), on page 87. 

      This is absolutely delicious.  I made a half recipe as it is very rich and figured a little moderation would be good.  That said, a half recipe easily feeds four.  The combination of cheeses is just wonderful.
      Ingredient list:  Fontina, Gorgonzola, Mascarpone, Parmigiano-Reggiano, salt, butter, heavy cream, and penne pasta. 

      Did I say this was good?  Simply delicious, definitely a repeat. 

      If you like the looks and sounds of it, buy the book as I am a believer in encouraging people to support the authors who put together these fabulous books by buying a copy, so you won't find the recipes posted from this book here.  (Buy it, the recipes are easy, the ingredients are easy to locate, it's not pricey, and there are photos of almost all the recipes.)

CEiMB: Four Cheese Baked Penne

      The recipe chosen this week for CEiMB, using Ellie Krieger's recipes online at FN Tv, was Four Cheese Baked Penne chosen by Lindsay of 71 Cookbooks.  You can find the recipe here. 

      We are a pasta-loving family, I think I might have mentioned that before once or twice.  Always happy to see pasta show up in the rotation for the cooking groups as I know the guys will be happy trying out a new recipe. 

      This recipe did not disappoint, it was very good and if I didn't know it was reduced in calories, I would not have been able to specifically say it was as it was absolutely satisfying and delicious.  The spices/herbs called for are a great combination of flavors, and the chili flakes give it a nice little kick of flavor, most welcome and delighful.  Definitely a repeat. 

      Next week's assignment is Sesame Shrimp Fried Rice with Cabbage, chosen by Sarah of Sarah's Kitchen Adventures, on page 158 of Ellie's book So Easy.  You can find the CEiMB blogroll here.

My Kitchen, My World: Denmark

       The world cuisine chosen for January's My Kitchen, My World was from the country of Denmark. 

      At the beginning of the month, I promised myself I would not let time get away from me and really embrace this country's cuisine, hoping that I would get something posted early.  Hmmm...the month got away from me and today I was frantically searching for something, anything at all that I could make and post albeit a day late.  Actually this turned out to be not a bad deal as I have two quick side dishes and a dessert that take no time to prepare and represent Denmark quite nicely. 

      The first is Danish Blue Cheese Salad and not only does it taste great, but the ingredients are ones that are easily found fresh this time of year (no trying to incorporate those mealy dry tomatoes that taste like nothing resembling a summer tomato).  

      I did manage to find some Danish Blue cheese (Rosenborg) as I thought that would be fun to try and I am very fond of that now.  The cheese has that tangy blue cheese flavor and yet it has a creaminess that melts in your mouth and tastes of grass-fed summertime cow's milk (okay, you might have to be a farm chick from Iowa to understand this, but I know of what I speak in this regard). 

      The second recipe is Sweet-Sour Cucumber Salad, which from everything I have read, is a staple in one form or another on every Danish/Scandinavian table pretty much every day.  I love things with a vinegary taste and that coupled with the little bit of sweetness in the dressing for this salad from the sugar, was a nice refreshing dish to accompany our Ruben sandwiches (not Danish but perfect on a rainy snowy sleety day). 

      The third recipe is Rodgrad med Flode (Red Fruit Pudding with Cream) and oh was this good.  I liked that it was made with frozen raspberries so you can make it any time of the year, like now for instance when the red raspberries in the store are like the red tomatoes in the store, sort of tasteless and not worth the money or effort to coax them along.  This dessert is a perfect way to end a winter meal with something bright, beautiful, and delicious! 

      So there you have it, a small taste of Denmark which will leave you wanting to keep exploring more complicated recipes and realizing that even the easy ones are tasty and delightful.
Danish Blue Cheese Salad
Serves 4

1 quart small butter lettuce
1 small bunch radishes, thinly sliced
2 inch length of cucumber, sliced paper thin
1 sweet onion, thinly sliced
1/4 pound crumbled Danish Blue cheese
Pinch of salt, pepper, dry mustard and sugar
2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
4 Tablespoons salad oil

Wash and dry the lettuce and turn it into a bowl.
Add the radishes, cucumber, and onion.
Sprinkle with blue cheese.
In a small bowl, mix salt, pepper, mustard, sugar, and vinegar.  Whisk in salad oil.
Just before serving, whisk gently again, and pour over the salad.
Sweet-Sour Cucumber Salad
Serves 12

2 large European-style cucumbers
1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
Dash of white pepper
4 teaspoons dried dill (or 4 Tablespoons fresh new dill)

Scrub the cucumber and slice paper thin.  Place the slices in a medium size bowl.
Mix the vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper and pour it over the cucumbers.
Sprinkle with the chopped dill.
Refrigerate for three hours to allow flavors to blend.
Drain, garnish with some fresh dill sprigs, and serve.
Rodgrod med Flode (Red Fruit Pudding with Cream)
Serves 6

2-10oz packages of frozen unsweetened raspberries (or any other berry you wish)
2 Tablespoons sugar
2 Tablespoons arrowroot
1/4 cup cold water
1/2 cup cream

Place the berries in a 1-1/2 quart saucepan and stir in the sugar.
Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
Mix arrowroot into cold water until it is a smooth paste.
Stir arrowroot paste into the pan of berries and let mixture come to a simmer (do not let it boil).
Stir until it thickens the mixture and remove from heat.
Pour pudding into a bowl to chill for at least two hours.
Spoon pudding into individual dishes and pass a pitcher of cream separately for each person to add themselves.

Tuesdays with Dorie: Great Grains Muffins

      Thanks to Christine, from Happy Tummy, for her pick of Great Grains Muffins, found on pages 8-9 of Dorie Greenspan's Baking from My Home to Yours cookbook.  You can find this recipe here, or buy the book and you can have them all! 

      Nancy and I are always looking for things we can make together on Twitter (with anyone else who wants to join in) but quite often Nancy and I have opposite schedules so finding time is always an issue.  Not with this one, however. 

      These muffins are quick, easy, full of wonderfully tasty ingredients, and oh-so-completely-delicious warm straight from the oven or at room temperature.
      I used dates for the dried fruit and if you want to know what Nancy used, you will need to check in over at her blog today and see what she chose.  These are definitely going to be repeated often here as they were just that good!  Top Five easily.  

        Next week:  Sharon from Simply Southern has chosen Bourbon Bread Pudding, found on page 407. TWD blogroll found here.